Energy storage plays an important role in the adoption of renewable energy to help solve climate change problems. Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are an excellent solution for energy storage due to their properties. In order to ensure the safety and efficient operation of LIB systems, battery management systems (BMSs) are required. The current design and functionality of BMSs suffer from a few critical drawbacks including low computational capability and limited data storage. Recently, there has been some effort in researching and developing smart BMSs utilizing the cloud platform. A cloud-based BMS would be able to solve the problems of computational capability and data storage in the current BMSs. It would also lead to more accurate and reliable battery algorithms and allow the development of other complex BMS functions. This study reviews the concept and design of cloud-based smart BMSs and provides some perspectives on their functionality and usability as well as their benefits for future battery applications. The potential division between the local and cloud functions of smart BMSs is also discussed. Cloud-based smart BMSs are expected to improve the reliability and overall performance of LIB systems, contributing to the mass adoption of renewable energy.

Emissions from the transportation sector are significant contributors to climate change and health problems because of the common use of gasoline vehicles. Countries in the world are attempting to transition away from gasoline vehicles and to electric vehicles (EVs), in order to reduce emissions. However, there are several practical limitations with EVs, one of which is the “range anxiety” issue, due to the lack of charging infrastructure, the high cost of long-ranged EVs, and the limited range of affordable EVs. One potential solution to the range anxiety problem is the use of range extenders, to extend the driving range of EVs while optimizing the costs and performance of the vehicles. This paper provides a comprehensive review of different types of EV range extending technologies, including internal combustion engines, free-piston linear generators, fuel cells, micro gas turbines, and zinc-air batteries, outlining their definitions, working mechanisms, and some recent developments of each range extending technology. A comparison between the different technologies, highlighting the advantages and disadvantages of each, is also presented to help address future research needs. Since EVs will be a significant part of the automotive industry future, range extenders will be an important concept to be explored to provide a cost-effective, reliable, efficient, and dynamic solution to combat the range anxiety issue that consumers currently have.

Emissions from the transportation sector due to the consumption of fossil fuels by conventional vehicles have been a major cause of climate change. Hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) are a cleaner solution to reduce the emissions caused by transportation, and well-designed HEVs can also outperform conventional vehicles. This study examines various powertrain configurations and components to design a hybrid powertrain that can satisfy the performance criteria given by the EcoCAR Mobility Challenge competition. These criteria include acceleration, braking, driving range, fuel economy, and emissions. A total of five different designs were investigated using MATLAB/Simulink simulations to obtain the necessary performance metrics. Only one powertrain design was found to satisfy all the performance targets. This design is a P4 hybrid powertrain consisting of a 2.5 L engine from General Motors, a 150 kW electric motor with an electronic drive unit (EDU) from American Axle Manufacturing, and a 133 kW battery pack from Hybrid Design Services.

The temperature and heat produced by lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries in electric and hybrid vehicles is an important field of investigation as it determines the power, performance, and cycle life of the battery pack. This paper presented both laboratory data and simulation results at C-rates of 1C, 2C, 3C, and 4C at an ambient temperature of approximately 23 °C. During experiment thermocouples were placed on the surface of the battery. The thermal model assumed constant current discharge and was experimentally validated. It was observed that temperature increased with C-rates at both the surface and the tabs. We note that at 4C the battery temperature increased from 22 °C to 47.40 °C and the tab temperature increased from 22 °C to 52.94 °C. Overall, the simulation results showed that more heat was produced in the cathode than the anode, the primary source of heat was the electrolyte resistance, and the battery temperature was the highest near the tabs and in the internal space of the battery. Simulation of the lithium concentration within the battery showed that the lithium concentration was more uniform in the anode than in the cathode. These results can help the accurate thermal design and thermal management of Li-ion batteries.

To ensure optimum working conditions for lithium-ion batteries, a numerical study is carried out for three-dimensional temperature distribution of a battery liquid cooling system in this work. The effect of channel size and inlet boundary conditions are evaluated on the temperature field of the battery modules. Based on the thermal behavior of discharging battery obtained experimental measurements, two temperature control strategies are proposed and studied. The results show that the channel width of the cooling plates has a great influence on the maximum temperature in the battery module. It is also revealed that increasing inlet water flow rate can significantly improve the heat transfer capacity of the battery thermal management system, while the relationship between them is not proportional. Lowering the inlet temperature can reduce the maximum temperature predicted in the battery module significantly. However, this will also lead to additional energy consumed by the cooling system. It is also found that the Scheme 5 among various temperature control strategies can ensure the battery pack working in the best temperature range in different depths of discharge. Compared with the traditional one with a given flow rate, the parasitic energy consumption in Scheme 5 can be reduced by around 80%.

This paper discusses the quantitative validation carried out on a prismatic 20 Ah LiFePO₄ battery sandwiched between two minichannel cold-plates with distributed flow having a single U-turn. A two-way coupled electrochemical-thermal simulations are performed at different discharge rates (1–4 C) and coolant inlet temperatures (15–35 °C). The predicted battery voltage response at room temperature (22 °C) and the performance of the Battery Thermal Management System (BTMS) in terms of the battery surface temperatures (maximum temperature, $T_{max}$ and temperature difference, $\Delta T$) have been analyzed. Additionally, temperature variation at ten different locations on the battery surface is studied during the discharge process. The predicted temperatures are compared with the measured data and found to be in close agreement. Differences between the predicted and measured temperatures are attributed to the assumption of uniform heat generation by the Li-ion model (P2D), the accuracy of electrochemical property input data, and the accuracy of the measuring tools used. Overall, it is suggested that the Li-ion model can be used to design the efficient BTMS at the cell level.